Copyright: ResDuet+, v2.50, ®1993, Michael Grice


Contents
RESDUET+

General
Overview
ResDuet+ Panel
Configure
The File Machine
Ordering Information
Warranty
Other Programs

Click [image] for help on how to use Help.


RESDUET+

A Windows Restart and Resources Utility

 Michael Grice
 3036 The Falls Parkway
 Duluth, Georgia 30136

Copyrights:
   © 1993, Michael Grice
   Portions:

                    Copyright  © 1993, Microsoft Corp.,
                    Copyright  © 1993, James Shields,
                    Copyright  © 1993, Crescent Software, Inc.
                    Copyright  © 1992, Desaware


GENERAL

ResDuet+ originally started as a simple two-function Windows utility to restart Windows and to show the available system resources. That is where the name came from ("res"tart and "res"ources and "duet" as in two). The "+" was added because of the many additions added to the program.

As many people know, when your Windows system resources get low (usually below 40%), everything in Windows slows down. To get these resources back up, if very few applications are open, you need to restart Windows. ResDuet+ does that and much more.


Add_Buttons
ADD BUTTONS

The BUTTONS button on The File Machine opens a window that will help you add your own files and applications to the 20 middle buttons.

Once you have opened this window, you will see a small button pad with 20 small buttons on it that coincides with the middle buttons on The File Machine.

There is also a BROWSE button to search your drives and directories for an application file to add to a button. Once you have selected a file from here, it will enter the entire path to the FILE PATH box. Or, you can enter the file path in the box manually.  Or you can drag a file from the File Manager and drop it on this window to automatically enter this information.

After your file is selected, the icon that comes with the selected application file will appear below the ICON button and the file's full path will also be added to the ICON PATH box. If you want to choose a different icon, click on the ICON button to find the path to the icon you want and it then will be entered in the ICON PATH box. Or, you can enter the icon path in the box manually. (If the file is an .exe file, the icon from the file will be shown in the box below the ICON button. If not, you will need to enter the necessary icon information in the ICON PATH box either with the ICON button or manually.)

You can now designate the information you want displayed in the status bar when the mouse cursor is over one of the middle buttons. The default will be the path of the file you have selected for a specific button but you can put whatever you want in the box, BUTTON TITLE, and this will be what is shown in the status bar (and also what the popup button tip will show for the drop-down buttons).

Once this has been done, select the button that coincides with the button's position on The File Machine that you want and click it. This will then transfer the file path and icon information to The File Machine and you're ready to go.

The file and icon information will be saved  in the same directory as the main ResDuet+ file (resduet.exe) in a file called filmach.dat. The working directory information will also be entered in the filmach.dat file if you manually enter it in the DIRECTORY box. If you move the main file (resduet.exe), you must also move the filmach.dat file. The icons will be saved as a bitmap file (pic?.bmp) in the same directory as the resduet.exe file.

There may be an application that you add to a button that may not load or open properly. Usually this is because that application's directory path needs to be loaded at the same time. If a problem occurs loading an application that you have added to a button, try adding the directory path (without the filename) to the DIRECTORY box  along with the other file path and icon information. This should work properly now. It is usually not necessary to enter this directory information for all applications.


File_Search
FILE SEARCH

The SEARCH button on The File Machine opens a window that will help you find a specified file or group of files.

Once you have opened this window, you will see the search list (file list) box on the left and the drive and directory boxes on the right with an area to specify the file or file type you want to find (File Info:). Just enter the filename or any part of it with wildcards (*, ?), select the drive (and directory if possible) and click the search button. In a few seconds the file or files will be listed in the file list box. You won't be able to open files from here. The file list box will hold about 4000 to 6000 filenames.

You can also cancel the search in progress if you choose by pushing the CANCEL button when it appears.


THE FILE MACHINE

The File Machine is a mini file manager that has several file and directory utilities as well as the button pad and bar to open specific applications and files. Because the ResDuet+ panel can float on top of other windows, access to The File Machine and these other application buttons is quick and easy.

Top Buttons
The first 10 of these buttons are standard Windows applications that you should already be familiar with. When your mouse cursor is above these buttons, the name of the application will show in the status bar at the bottom of The File Machine. The next button opens the help, information and configuration menu. The last button exits The File Machine.

Middle Buttons
These buttons can be configured to open your specified files and applications. To set these up and add your applications to them, click on the BUTTONS button at the bottom left of The File Machine. These buttons can also be accessed (but not setup) by clicking on the left ResDuet+ panel (Time) with your right mouse button. The buttons only, with the command-line, will drop down for easy application access. The B button at the right of the command-line on the drop-down buttons will open a window to browse the directory and file list boxes to enter a file path and filename in the command-line. A popup button tip for these drop-down buttons will show the file path of the specific button (or the name that you enter when you initially set-up the buttons). These popup button tips can be turned off with the menu item CONFIGURE...DISABLE BUTTON TIPS.

Bottom Buttons
These buttons are used for file and directory utilities.

 BUTTONS
This is used to open the window that will add your files and applications to the middle button pad.

 SEARCH
 This is used to open the window that will search for a file or group of files  based on your search criteria.

 DELETE
 This is used to delete files, one (or more) at a time. You can also drag a file(s) from the file list box on the right and drop it on this button to open the procedure.

 OPEN
This will open a selected file from the file list box. Some files (ini, bat, txt...) will be opened in the Windows notepad. Others (exe, com, pif...) will be executed. You can also drag a file and drop it on this button to open it.

COPY
This will copy a selected file from the file list box. You will need to select the destination path (drive and directory) where you are copying to. You can also drag a file and drop it on this button to start the copy procedure.

 MOVE
This will move a selected file from the file list box. You will also need to select the destination path (drive and directory) where you are moving to. You can also drag and drop a file on this button to start the move procedure.

 RENAME
This will rename a selected file from the file list box. You only need to enter the new name of the file here. You can also drag and drop a file on this button  to start the rename procedure.

 MAKEDIR
This is used to create a new directory below the selected and opened directory. You can also remove a selected and empty directory by clicking the Rem Dir button in the MAKEDIR window.


OVERVIEW

ResDuet+ is a small utility that fits in an area of a window's title bar or can be moved anywhere on screen.

The main ResDuet+ panel shows the time on the left side panel and the available system resources on the right side panel. The two buttons in the middle will Exit Windows or Restart Windows.

The File Machine is a mini file manager that is accessed through the ResDuet+ panel and has several file and directory utilities as well as a button pad and button bar for Windows applications and your own files and applications. The middle button pad can also be accessed via the ResDuet+ panel if you only want to open an application that you have added to these buttons.


RESDUET+ PANEL

 Time Panel
This panel shows the time but also has other functions:

• When you click on the TIME panel with your LEFT mouse button, The File Machine opens.

• When you click on the TIME panel with your RIGHT mouse button, the middle button pad from The File Machine appears with the applications that you added to the middle buttons

 Resources Panel
This panel shows the perdentage of available system resources and also has two other functions:

When you click on this panel with your LEFT mouse button and hold it down, you can move the ResDuet+ panel anywhere on the screen and the new position will be saved.

When you click on this panel with your RIGHT mouse button, the menu will appear with several items to choose. Click on the Configure menu item to change several settings for the ResDuet+ panel.

 Exit/Restart Windows
 The "E" button will exit Windows and the "R" button will restart Windows. Please be sure to close all files before using these.


Configure
CONFIGURE RESDUET+

To open the popup menu at the ResDuet+ panel, click on the right (resources) panel with your right mouse button.

Disable ResDuet+ On Top
The ResDuet+ panel is set to float on top of other windows. Occasionally (or possibly permanently) you may want to change this. By clicking on this menu item, the float feature will be disabled. Also, sometimes if other windows with the float-on-top feature are opened, it may disable the float for ResDuet+. To get it back, just click to disable it then close the menu then re-open it and click to enable it again.

Disable Exit Warn
When you click on the "E" or "R" buttons to exit or restart Windows, you will get a message box asking if you are sure you want to do this, then you click again to answer. This menu item will disable those message boxes so that when you click on these buttons, you will exit or restart Windows immediately. Be sure to close any open files before using these buttons.

Hide Program Manager
When checked, this will hide the Program Manager icon when it is minimized and moves other minimized icons in a line to the bottom left of your screen.

Edit File Machine Buttons
This will open the filmach.dat  file, where the path information for The File Machine middle buttons is located, for editing.

Sounds
Included with the ResDuet+ program is a zipped file with several voice sounds on it for many of the commands in this program. If you have a sound card and want to use these sounds, unzip these files into the same directory as the main ResDuet+ program file (resduet.exe). Then select this menu item to activate the sounds with either a male or female voice (or none).

Using the sound files will slow some of the enter and exit functions that these sounds are attached to.


restart
You restart Windows similarly to exiting Windows except that you do not go back as far as the DOS prompt and will automatically return to Windows.


EXIT/RESTART BUTTONS

Exit Windows
The "E" button will exit Windows when clicked with the left mouse button. This can be configured in the Configure menu to exit immediately by disabling the warning question box. Please close all open applications first.

To close the ResDuet+ program, click on the "E" button with your right mouse button.

Restart Windows
The "R" button will restart Windows when clicked with the left mouse button. This can also be configured in the Configure menu to restart immediately when the Disable Exit Warn item is checked on the menu. Please close all open applications first.

To close the ResDuet+ program, click on the "R" button with your right mouse button.


OTHER PROGRAMS

Try these other programs from Michael Grice. They can be found on many of the same online services and BBS's (as well as from a variety of shareware distributors) that ResDuet+ was found .

YOUR FILE CABINET
 YOUR FILE CABINET is an application & file utility that uses folders that each have a variety of features. Several folders have user-configurable buttons, one has 18 of the most popular Windows applets, one has an enhanced notepad feature with folder tabs for each of the DOS and Windows system files as well as the filecab.dat file when it is created and another has several file utilities (copy, move, rename, command-line, search & more). YOUR FILE CABINET is very customizable (including the front cover name) and easy to use. Now has the ability to add titles/names to application & utility buttons. This program can be found on CompuServe, America Online (Windows Magazine), Exec-PC and many other BBS's around the country. The filename is FILECAB.ZIP (or FILCAB.ZIP).

 PLAIN OL' BUTTON BAR
The PLAIN OL' BUTTON BAR is a vertical button bar with 3 extended button bars that can hold up to a total of 54 user applications. The main button bar can be changed to almost any size below the maximum (2 cols. x 15) and can be postioned in various places. It can float on top of other windows. Very easy to setup and use. Now has top positioning ability, drag & drop from File Manager to Configuration, popup button information with right mouse click & much more. The filename for this is PLAINBAR.ZIP (or PLANBR.ZIP) and can be found in the same places as RESDUET+ and YOUR FILE CABINET.

For pricing and discount information, please read the REGISTER.TXT file.


WARRANTY

There are NO warranties, expressed OR implied, with this software program.

The author is in NO WAY RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DAMAGE OF ANY KIND, INCLUDING MENTAL, PHYSICAL, MONETARY, ETC., TO THE USER OR COMPUTER OR PETS OR NEIGHBORS OR SPOUSES.
                  U S E  A T  Y O U R  O W N  R I S K.


ORDERING INFORMATION

To order and register, send a check or money order to:
Michael Grice
3036 The Falls Parkway
Duluth, Georgia 30136

Can now be ordered through CompuServe's Software Registration (Go SWREG) with ID #2350.

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*** CREDIT CARD ORDERS ONLY ***

You can order with MC, Visa, Amex, or Discover from Public (software) Library by calling 800-2424-PsL or 713-524-6394 or by FAX to 713-524-6398 or by CIS Email to 71355,470. You can also mail credit card orders to PsL at P.O.Box 35705, Houston, TX 77235-5705.

* THE ABOVE NUMBERS ARE FOR ORDERS ONLY.

Any questions about the status of the shipment of the order, refunds, registration options, product details, technical support, volume discounts, dealer pricing, site licenses, etc, must be directed to my address shown above.

To insure that you get the latest version, PsL will notify us the day of your order and we will ship the product directly to you.

=== USE ITEM #11536 ===

 For These Credit Card Orders, ADD $3.00 S&H for U.S. Orders ($5.00 S&H All Others)
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For current pricing information, please read the included RESDUET.TXT file and the REGISTER.TXT file.

Benefits of Registering
You will receive the most current version of ResDuet+ without the nag screens (via a registration file). You will also receive discounts on future versions of ResDuet as well as discounts on other programs written by me.

This information is only for those that have not registered or who need the ordering information for somebody else.


Status_Bar
The status bar (text box) at the bottom of The File Machine shows information about the button or other item that your mouse cursor is over.